Reports on programs and activities designed to teach thinking skills either as a separate school subject or as a strand in a content area. (FL)

In order to realize their academic missions and respond to state demands for access, assessment, and accountability, the nation's community colleges, along with all other institutions of higher education, are focusing increasingly on the enhancement of academic support services. Learning centers represent an important means of providing learning…

Exploring the relationship between generic skills (sometimes called employability skills) and career and technical education (CTE) requires asking these three questions: Are such skills taught in CTE? Can they be taught? Do employers value them over technical skills. A literature review of 14 books, reports, and journal articles concludes that…

Teaching skills can be acquired or modified through various processes, including observation, concept acquisition, practice, and feedback. However, evidence does not indicate that combining these processes into a single training methodology provides any advantage for teacher trainees. Teaching also may be influenced by providing information about…

Argues that educators have the intent and the means to develop students who can reason and reflect across all content areas. Outlines three principles involved in teaching critical thinking. (RS)

This digest describes how foreign language instructors at Iowa State University of Science and Technology and Santa Clara University (California) have integrated the participation of native speakers from their communities into the curriculum in ways that allow students to practice their language skills and develop a heightened sense of cultural…

This digest focuses on teaching integrated skills in the English-as-a-Second/Foreign-Language classroom (ESL/EFL). Segregated-skill instruction is examined and two types of integrated-skills instruction are highlighted: content-based instruction and task-based instruction. The advantages of integrated-skill instruction are discussed, and five…

Examines the effectiveness of five college level learning skills centers on grade improvement and retention. Finds successful programs are well structured, link with academic courses students take concurrently, stress a supportive relationship with the instructor, include behavioral counseling, are interwoven with other services and programs, and…

Abstracts of most of the papers, symposia, and poster sessions presented at the 60th conference of the National Association for Research in Science Teaching (NARST) are provided. Subject areas addressed include: videodisc technology; problem solving; cognitive learning; attitudes toward science; teaching strategies; science, technology, society;…

Considerable evidence exists that high-quality early childhood education programs for children from birth to age 5 can have long-lasting, positive consequences for children's success in school and later in life, especially for children from low-income families. However, such programs are not available for all children who need them, nor are all…

Adult education programs must increasingly serve non-native speakers of English, many of whom are neither literate in their native language nor in English. It is suggested that first language literacy promotes second language acquisition and that literacy skills in the native language are likely to transfer to the second language. This digest…

Selected research studies that explore the assumption that college science students operate at a formal cognitive level are presented in this information digest. Studies are reviewed that relate to the areas of: (1) formal thought (examining the relationship between measured formal thought and that required to understand formal college physical…

Noting that speech is not simply basic communication, this digest discusses ways in which teachers can help children develop oral language proficiency. The digest holds that speech involves thinking, knowledge, and skills, and that it requires practice and training. After setting out three criteria for oral language competence--fluency, clarity,…

This digest outlines the reasons for and challenges of developing the language skills of heritage language speakers and describes one effort to carry this out, the Heritage Languages Initiative. Specific sections address the following: developing language skills of U.S. residents; the range of language proficiencies of heritage language speakers;…

A number of misconceptions or "myths" about information management have arisen since the beginning of the Information Age. One misconception is that the problem of information overload stems from too much information. In reality, the greater problem may be an explosion of noninformation. Many people believe that they must try to stay on…